Report -Chinese railway workshop - 23.1.08

28DL Full Member

This proved to me that it is always worth delving into the most unlikely places when out and about.

Whilst in a mining district in north-east China the opportunity arose to nip into what looked like a disused building at the back of the railway workshops. Not only did it contain various bits of railway wagons but in a corner was a complete steam locomotive. It transpires that it was built in Japan in 1936 and is still occasionally used to haul coal trains when no other power was available. I got the impression when talking to the local railwaymen later in the day, that it is a bit of a pet and they keep it hidden away from the possible gaze of higher management who might consider it better consigned to the scrap furnace. It may have been here since new as the Japanese invaded this area in the late 1930's and were not removed until 1945. The nearby coal washery was certainly Japanese built but I was unable to get into that.